


Just Call And I'll Be There

by Emme2589



Series: Just Call And I'll Be There [1]
Category: Henry Stickmin Series (Video Games)
Genre: Boys Kissing, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Government Supported Private Investigator Ending | GSPI (Henry Stickmin), Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, Injury Recovery, International Rescue Operative Ending | IRO (Henry Stickmin), M/M, Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, henry uses some sign language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:08:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27459982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emme2589/pseuds/Emme2589
Summary: Charles gets a call from Henry in the middle of nowhere, asking for a ride home after a wrongful recapture. Lucky for him, Charles is happy to help.
Relationships: Charles Calvin/Henry Stickmin
Series: Just Call And I'll Be There [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2011435
Comments: 9
Kudos: 180





	Just Call And I'll Be There

Man, this mission was going to wring him out into a bucket by the time it was over.

Special Ops Pilot Charles Calvin was struggling to keep his eyes open as the mission wrapped up. It wasn't anything super complicated, but it was lengthy, and he'd been in the air for over twelve hours. Normally, that wouldn't bother him so much, but he hadn't been sleeping well because he'd been worried about Henry.

Henry. The name wouldn't leave his mind. One day, Henry Stickmin was accepting his calls, listening to him ramble, and even going on a few missions after the incredible success that was the airship mission, but now he wasn't answering his phone at all, and nobody was ever at his apartment in the outskirts of the city. It wasn't like Henry to simply disappear off the face of the earth without so much as a note, and it made Charles super paranoid that he'd been kidnapped or had returned to crime or something.

He couldn't place exactly why, but the thought that Henry would return to crime made something twist inside his chest. He thought Henry was his friend. They made such a good team, so it hurt to think he'd been betrayed, but of course, the thought that Henry had been forcibly taken, whether by law enforcement who didn't get the memo or by other criminals...wasn't exactly appealing either.

He couldn't help it. He was really worried.

_"Charlie! Report!"_

"Right, General. The sky is dark and snowy, so visibility is poor. It might take me awhile to get back."

_"Well, try to hurry. We need you back on base. Oh, but uh, don't crash obviously. We'll hold out for you until then."_

"Okay. I'm coming." Charles turned his headlights up brighter as the storm picked up. Great. More flying. He didn't think he'd ever say that to himself, but hey, if he ate nothing but ice cream for four weeks, he wouldn't be able to eat it anymore.

He didn't know what had stuck out to him so much about Henry. Maybe it was the startling difference between when he was quiet and calm to when he became a scheming mastermind. Charles didn't condone theft of course, but that didn't stop him from wringing every detail of Henry's past heists out of him to the point where the quiet man was laughing uncontrollably at Charles' unrelenting curiosity. Can you blame him though? By the time security at the Tunisian exhibit had even realized there'd been a heist, Henry was already long gone with the precious artifact. Henry had no qualms about openly boasting too, so even though he downplayed some parts of the story, Charles could tell he was still proud that he had managed something like that.

Just as Charles was heading back towards the United States, his helicopter picked up a new signal. It wasn't a frequency that was connected to any government as far as he could tell. In fact, it looked like it was coming from the middle of nowhere.

Fearing the worst but still thinking about Henry, he answered the call through his headset, "...hello?"

The voice on the other end was hopeful, _"Charles?"_

"Henry!?" Charles was suddenly wide awake, "Hey! How's it going? I was starting to worry about you!"

 _"Um, yeah..."_ Henry's voice lowered even more, in fear or something else, Charles couldn't tell, _"Hey, I'm so sorry about this, but do you think you can come and get me? Are you flying right now?"_

"Yeah, I _am_ flying right now, actually. Where are you?"

_"I'm at The Wall. It's like a Russian complex for criminals?"_

"The Wall..." Charles thought about the name. It certainly sounded familiar, "Yeah, I think I've heard of that place." he checked his radar, tracing the source of the signal for whatever Henry was using to call him, "Actually, I'm pretty close. Yeah, I'm on a mission right now, but I should have time to swing by. Oh, and uh...you should probably hang up until I get there. I can always call back, and the signal you're emitting could give you away."

 _"Oh."_ Henry sighed, _"Okay. Promise you'll call back when you're here?"_

"I promise. Soldier's honor. You know how it is."

So, Henry hung up, and Charles tracked where the signal had been as he flew deeper into the snowstorm, _away_ from base. According to his radar, the complex was only about an hour away from him. Two hours round-trip on top of a forty-hour flight wouldn't matter much to the general, right? Hopefully not. Even if he did care, getting Henry back would be well worth it.

When he was about five minutes away, he redialed the number Henry had called from before, "Okay, so I'm getting pretty close. See if you can get outside, and I'll find a place to pick you up."

 _"Thanks, Charles."_ Henry took a deep breath. It sounded like he was shaking a little bit, _"Okay. Almost there."_

"You okay, Henry?"

_"Yeah, fine. Just...don't like the cold."_

Charles decided not to dwell on how haunted he sounded over the phone, "Don't worry. I've got heaters in the chopper, and extra blankets and stuff."

_"You always come prepared."_

The hint of humor in Henry's voice made something flutter in Charles' chest. It was just like the airship mission, when Henry would make little quips between Charles' instructions. It reminded him that this man wasn't just good at missions, he _enjoyed_ them. Not that Charles didn't, but not everybody did, and it was a nice reminder nonetheless.

"Alright, so I see The Wall..." 

The sound of a creaking door came over the call, followed by a gasp, and howling wind.

 _"Okay, 'm outside."_ Henry said between his teeth chattering.

"Awesome! I think I see you!" Henry was on the metal staircase along the outside of the building, wearing an oversized grey parka, probably stolen from the inside, "Oh, I see a helipad up here. Might be a good place..." he scanned the staircase through the blizzard, "...to get picked up..."

Henry climbed up the stairs, holding a cellphone to his ear as he struggled not to slip on the slick steps.

"Sorry. I wish I could help you out here."

_"It's fine, Charles. I can climb some stairs."_

"Oh, but if I get too close, they'll uh, probably raise the alarm..."

Henry looked at him through the storm. He was far enough away that, surely, only the vague shape of a helicopter was visible, but for a moment, the pilot swore Henry made direct eye contact with him.

Once Henry made it to the top of the stairs, Charles waited for him to catch his breath before easing the chopper forward.

He heard the blare of an alarm as the soldiers lifted their weapons on the helipad, "Oh, yeah. They see me. Alright, I'm coming in, get ready."

Henry looked up at the helicopter with wide eyes before hanging up the phone and running for the guy holding a rocket launcher. Charles let the helicopter wobble as it landed, hoping that whatever soldiers were left would get spooked by his reckless path. Henry glared at the rocket launcher guy before diving for the helicopter, where Charles opened the door for him. As soon as he heard the door shut, he yanked up on the controls, and the two of them were on their way.

"Charles!" Henry wrapped his arms around him, his cheek pressing into the back of his head, "I'm so happy to see you!"

Charles' hands fumbled on the controls as his face heated up from the contact, "Ah! H-hey, I'm kinda flying right now!"

"Sorry!" Henry collapsed into the copilot seat, rubbing his arms over the sleeves of the massive coat, "Ah! Free at last!"

"Why were you in there, anyway? You haven't been doing anything illegal since your pardon...?"

"No, I swear I haven't." Henry crossed his arms, "At least, nothing that should have put me on that guy's radar..."

Charles thought that something about Henry's tone, his expression and mannerisms...was a little off. He couldn't quite place it, but he was too tired to stage a proper confrontation.

He yawned into the back of his hand, "Okay, Henry, it's gonna take a long time to get back to base, so sit tight, make yourself comfortable, there are provisions in the back if you're hungry or whatever, just make yourself at home, yeah?"

Henry didn't reply. Charles glanced at him to see that he'd already fallen asleep. Damn. He must've been through a lot.

Charles grasped Henry's forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze before going back to steering, prepared for a long flight back home.

***

As Charles landed the helicopter on site, he could feel his eyes burning with the effort to keep them open against the harsh South American sunlight. Settling the aircraft and turning off the engine, he closed his eyes as he leaned back in his seat. Now that the danger had long since passed, he felt so heavy.

"Henry?" he shook his charge, "Henry, we're here."

Henry's eyes fluttered open. He gasped, fear overtaking his features before his gaze settled on Charles and he sighed in relief.

Charles decided not to press it, "Bad dream?"

Henry nodded.

"I see." Charles helped him to his feet, "Are you injured? Need anything patched up?"

Henry forced a smile, waving a hand dismissively, but Charles could see how stiff the action came.

"Hey, if you're, like, really hurt, then I need to patch you up, okay?" Charles took each of Henry's shoulders to look right in his eyes, "I mean it. We can't have injured soldiers on base. Now where does it hurt?"

Henry's gaze fell to the floor, and his smile dropped like an anchor.

"Come on. I'll take you to my tent, okay? Then no one else'll see you."

Henry didn't respond, but he did allow Charles to guide him from the helicopter across the camp. Occasionally, someone waved to Charles, who gave a brief greeting in response, and a few of them acknowledged Henry, too. His smile was coming a little easier by now, but he still moved just a little too stiffly.

Finally, Charles got them inside his tent and zipped the opening closed, "Sit down right here. I'll get my med kit."

He opened up the wide box as Henry sat cross-legged on Charles' sleeping bag, his finger tracing a pattern in the flecks of dirt on the fabric floor.

"Okay." Charles hesitated before taking Henry's hand to still its movement, "Show me where you're hurt."

Henry chewed on his bottom lip, slowly shrugging off the Russian parka and then sliding off the sweater underneath. Once he was bare, he carefully spun around so his back was facing Charles, and the pilot found himself staring in horror. Among Henry's many faded grey scars, there were now huge gashes across his shoulders and back, like he'd received lashings from something thick and course. They weren't bleeding anymore, but they were scabbing like a bad sunburn, cracked and dry and peeling.

Charles shook his head, snapping himself out of it before reaching for the med kit to retrieve the antiseptic, pouring the stuff into a clean rag before giving Henry a pat on the shoulder, "Fair warning; This might sting."

Henry braced himself as Charles rubbed the antiseptic over the wounds until the dirt was all gone, the loose scabs breaking off and bringing more blood to the surface of the skin. Henry trembled, his breathing ragged and uneven.

"I know I know..." Charles soothed, "It's okay, Henry. You're doing really well. Just hold still, yeah?"

His words seemed to calm Henry a tad, enough that his breathing evened out just slightly. Once the wounds were clean, Charles pat the area dry, applying a bit of antibacterial ointment before he placed patches over the wounds and applied medical tape around the edges, wrapping Henry's torso in gauze for good measure.

"There. All done." Charles reached for one of his own shirts, pulling it over Henry's head and guiding his arms through the sleeves, "Now, uh, try not to move too much. It needs time to heal. If it still hurts, I can give you something that'll help with the pain."

Henry spun back around to face him, and Charles realized with a start that his face was damp with tears.

"Ah, shoot, did it really hurt that much? I'm so sorry! I tried to be gentle!"

Henry vigorously shook his head, waving his arms until he had Charles' attention. Once he did, he looked away before taking Charles' hand and squeezing it, shaking it firmly in his grip.

The message was clear; _You made it better._

"Okay, so I didn't mess up?"

Henry shook his head.

"Good. I'm glad." Charles ran his thumb into the back of Henry's hand, "Hey...if you don't mind me asking, how did you get those wounds? They looked like..."

He didn't finish. Henry got the point.

Henry was still as he thought of a response, his gaze drilling into Charles' hands like he couldn't believe this wasn't a dream. Finally, his breaths came far easier, so he inhaled to speak.

 _"Tried to escape. More than once."_ his voice came out as nothing more than a whisper, _"Punishment."_

"Oh no..." Charles' stomach dropped like lead, "Oh no, Henry. I'm so sorry."

Henry shrugged dismissively, though he winced at the tightness of the bandages on his back.

"No, it's _not_ okay." Charles lifted Henry's chin to make him look at him, "That's absolutely horrible. What they did is most certainly illegal. Even if you _were_ still a criminal, you don't deserve anything close to this. I'm _sorry."_

More tears pricked in Henry's eyes, and he squeezed them shut, which caused the tears to flow down his face.

"D'you need a hug?"

Henry opened his arms wide, and Charles pulled him in. Henry buried his face in the collar of Charles' bomber jacket, both arms wrapped tightly around his waist. Charles sighed as he pat Henry's head, his other arm firmly around Henry's back.

Charles rested his cheek against Henry's temple, "It's okay, Henry. I gotcha now. You're safe."

Henry whimpered softly, still shaking with silent cries until he was wrung out and exhausted. Charles reached behind him for one of his spare blankets, wrapping it around Henry's shoulders until he was bundled up like a burrito. Henry buried his face in the blanket as Charles wiped his tears away.

_"Thank you for rescuing me."_

Charles smiled, "No problem, Henry. Now, you should get some sleep. I know _I_ could use the rest right about now."

_"Don't go."_

"Hey, I'm not going anywhere." Charles lay him in the sleeping bag and zipped him up, "I'll be right here, okay?"

Despite what he'd just said, Henry weakly grabbed his sleeve, such a pleading look in his dark blue eyes that Charles mirrored his distress, too tired to hide his own heartache at the situation.

"I promise." Charles said softer, stroking a thumb over Henry's sweaty forehead, "I'm not leaving. I'll be here when you wake up, I swear."

Henry blinked slowly at him as he relaxed. His eyes slid closed, and soon enough, he was fast asleep.

Unwilling to go too far, Charles rolled out a blanket beside him, and then he lay down and was out like a light.

***

Charles awoke that morning confused about where he was. It smelled like home, but it felt like he was on a blanket over hard-packed dirt.

His arm fell over an empty sleeping bag, and his eyes fluttered open.

"Oi! Charles!" Rupert poked his head into the tent, "Get out 'ere, Mate! Henry's makin' pancakes!"

Oh, _that_ was what he was smelling. Charles sat up, popping his back with both fists digging into his spine. Ouch. He yawned into his hand, squeezing his eyes shut as crusty reflex tears blurred his vision. He wanted nothing more than to roll over and go back to sleep, but the smell of blueberry pancakes was intoxicating, so he semi-reluctantly got to his feet and followed the smell.

He made it to the clearing near the middle of camp, where a fire was roaring hot in the fire pit. A metal grate lay over the fire, and there was Henry, holding a frying pan and expertly pouring pancake batter into it. He swirled it around, held it over the fire, and then as the group around him began to cheer, Henry threw the frying pan upwards, and Charles watched as the pancake flew high up into the air before landing back in the pan on its uncooked side.

 _"OOOHHHHH!!!"_ the crowd of soldiers cheered, and Henry gave a dramatic bow, though it wasn't very deep, and his back didn't bend.

He dumped the cooked pancake on the already enormous stack on the nearby picnic table before he spotted Charles and his eyes sparkled. He gathered a stack of three on a plate, slathering some butter and maple syrup on it before hurrying over and presenting the plate to Charles with a flourish and a huge smile.

"Oh, is..." Charles took the plate, "Is this for me?"

Henry nodded.

Charles looked at the plate as Henry set a fork down in the pooling syrup beside the stack, "Blueberry pancakes are my favorite."

Henry nodded again, tapping his forehead with his pointer finger.

"You remembered." Charles felt his lip quivering, "Ah, there I go, getting all emotional. Thank you, Henry."

Henry placed his thumb over the fork, pushing the plate closer and giving the pilot a wink.

"Oh, right. Yeah." Charles picked up the fork in his right hand, cutting a chunk of the stack and dragging it through the syrup before popping the bite in his mouth.

Henry eyed him hopefully, his smile gone.

"Ooh." Charles hummed as he chewed, "It's...I didn't know you could cook, Henry."

Henry shrugged, both hands in his pockets as he casually stood with his ankles crossed beneath him.

Charles swallowed, "This is amazing! They're burnt slightly on the outside, airy and soft in the middle, and the blueberries...ah! It's great! Thank you!"

"Told ya he'd love it." Rupert elbowed Henry, bringing a sheepish blush to his face.

Charles laughed, and Henry's gaze lingered on him. It didn't go unnoticed the way Henry's smile seemed to soften on him. It melted his heart. Henry had dimples. _Dimples!_ And he always smiled like that at _him!_

Henry ended up making so many pancakes that the whole army got to eat until they were stuffed. Henry took small, tentative bites, mostly watching as Charles savored every mouthful, soaking the stacks in the syrup before squeezing it out between his teeth.

Charles swallowed, licking his lips for any stray stickiness, "Henry, where'd you learn to cook?"

Henry took another bite before putting his fork down. Sighing and thinking for a minute, he splayed his hand out before touching his chin with his thumb.

He had made the sign for "Mom."

"Oh." Charles was a little surprised. Henry almost never talked about his family. He had just assumed he didn't have one anymore, "Can... _can I meet her...?"_

Henry's frown deepened, and Charles panicked a little bit. _Please don't tell me she's dead or abusive or something, please don't let me be a source of suffering, please just answer don't leave me hanging please-!_

"I don't know." came Henry's quiet reply, "I haven't seen her myself in eight years."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." Charles quickly tried to backpedal, "I don't wanna pressure you or whatever. Forget I said anything."

Henry's smile returned as he gently hit Charles' arm with the back of his hand, "'s okay, man. Maybe you'll meet her one day."

Charles sighed in relief, "Yeah?"

"Yeah. I think she'd like you. Might even praise you for setting me straight."

Henry took another bite of pancakes, but this time, his face scrunched up, and he swallowed thickly as he held a hard blueberry between his teeth.

Charles laughed, "Sour?"

Henry nodded, his lips curling away from it like he'd bitten into a lemon. He looked up at Charles, setting his plate down, and leaned closer to him, a teasing smile on his face.

Charles felt his face run hot. What was this fluttering in his chest? It felt like a butterfly was trapped inside his ribcage. Henry's eyes went half-lidded as Charles' blush intensified, a low chuckle escaping from deep in his chest.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Charles lunged forward and wrapped his lips around the blueberry, fishing it out with his tongue as Henry flinched back, his eyes wide open.

"Mph-!" Henry tilted his head, giving up the sour blueberry and returning the odd kiss before there was a soft popping sound as they separated.

Charles bit down on the blueberry a little too forcefully, not even tasting the sour juice it contained. He had just done that. In front of the entire fleet, no less. He froze in place, his face getting hotter and hotter as Henry's shock morphed into another amused smile, covering his mouth as his own blush reached his ears.

"Aw yes!" Rupert slapped the back of an annoyed-looking Quentin, "You owe me twenty bucks, mate!"

The exclamation was so ridiculous, it broke Charles from whatever spell had trapped him there, "Henry! I'm so sorry! That was _so_ inappropriate! I can't _believe_ I just did that!"

"Charles, it's okay." Henry pointed at himself, then he lifted that hand to hold out his pointer finger, pinkie, and thumb, while his middle and ring fingers curled in towards his palm.

It meant, "I love you."

Charles was stunned. He glanced up and happened to meet the gaze of Dave Panpa, who gave him a wink and a thumbs up.

 _"I was..."_ Henry's voice had gone soft again, _"...hoping you'd do that, actually. I thought I was going to die in that complex. I was scared I would never see you again."_

Charles took a step back, and Henry lifted an arm towards him before letting it fall.

_"I need to say something now, before it's too late. I have...feelings for you, Charles."_

Charles' lip quivered, and that was all the warning he got before his eyes flooded and spilled over. He choked, gasping for air, and Henry held his arms out, concern written all over his face.

"Ah! S-sorry!" Charles' voice wobbled, "I-I-I don't know why I'm crying! I'm happy, really! Jesus, this is so embarrassing!"

_"Just kiss already!"_

_"They already did kiss, you idiot!"_

Charles and Henry laughed, both still blushing furiously.

"Um, hang on..." Charles wiped his eyes, "I didn't do it right the first time. Can I try again?"

Henry smiled softly, giving a slow, shaky nod.

Charles touched Henry's shoulders, feeling the bandages under the long-sleeved shirt before trailing his hands up to Henry's face, still sporting that soft smile that made Charles' heart go soft.

"Hey, uh...you're fine with this, right? You're not uncomfortable?"

Henry held Charles' hands against his face, giving another slow nod.

So, Charles gently pressed his lips to Henry's, and Henry's arms slowly wrapped around his waist, holding him close as he tilted his head to better meet him. Charles felt the stickiness of maple syrup still clinging to Henry's mouth, so cautiously, he stuck his tongue out to lap at the sweet texture. Henry's breath hitched, and Charles took advantage of his slightly parted lips to access more lingering syrup.

By the time they pulled away from each other, Henry had saliva all over his mouth, which he hastily wiped away with his sleeve, his hands shaking and his face flushed red.

"Mmm." Charles made a show of running his tongue over his lips, "Delicious."

That did it. Henry covered his face, his shoulders shaking with poorly-concealed laughter.

The crowd around them cheered, some soldiers holding up their forks with sticky pancake still stuck to them. Charles noticed beyond the noise that Henry's lips were moving, and even from the distance between them, he could tell that his heart was pounding.

"What was that, Henry? I didn't hear you."

"Lucky! I'm so lucky!" Henry pulled him into a hug, _"Thank you. Thank you, Charles. Thank you for everything."_

"You're welcome!" Charles returned the hug, felt the bandages under the fabric again, and remembered the wounds. Lowering his voice to a whisper, he kissed Henry's cheek, _"Hey, if you ever need me, don't hesitate to call again. I'll always be there for you, okay?"_

Henry dropped his head into Charles' neck, giving his torso a squeeze, and he knew he'd been heard.

Charles wasn't sure what to do afterwards. Were Henry and him a couple now? The thought made him simultaneously nervous and excited. He didn't know if he was ready for that just yet, but he did know that Henry meant the world to him, and there was nothing in the world that could force him to let go.

He kept holding onto Henry, sighing contentedly into his shirt. This was definitely something he could get used to.

***

**Author's Note:**

> Tried something different this time. Not sure if I'll expand on it later, but we'll see.
> 
> Come say hi to me on tumblr! marshemillow.tumblr.com


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